Celebrating the River Frome at the River Festival: A Busy Day Filled with Fun, Music, Nature, Learning, River Dipping and Environmental Stewardship
On Sunday 9th June Frome Families for the Future (FFFF) and Friends of the River Frome organised our River Festival to celebrate, protect and connect our community to the River Frome. This family-friendly event, packed full of stalls, activities, music and talks attracted over 450 people throughout the day. Highlights were a talk with Jeremy Wade from the TV show River Monsters, river dipping and creature identification, environmental learning, nature storytelling, river exploration, and live music by Martin Sheills and The Ripple Effect.
River Dipping and live music
Following the path to the river at Rodden Meadow we turned the corner to be greeted with the sounds of singing, splashing and laughter. Immediately, I caught sight of children in oversized waders with large nets helping Bristol Avon River Trust capture a sample of Frome’s many river creatures whilst The Ripple Effect band warmed up getting ready to sing their moving song ‘I Am River’. Their multigenerational band formed by Frome Families for the Future, collaboratively versed and harmonized the entire song whilst being riverside, the lyrics represent their feelings of how the river joins us all – animals, humans and nature alike, highlighting the connection between the planet’s health and our own wellbeing.
Jeremy Wade Talk
After the soulful rendition of ‘I Am River’, we listened to the charismatic Jeremy Wade talk ‘Rivers’, telling us a fascinating tale of when he rescued a castaway in South Australia to demonstrate the integral role that rivers play in our lives, how they have shaped our towns and industry, how the river runs out of our taps and through our bodies and impacts our health, how it protects us from floods and droughts as well as nurturing the delicate ecosystem and wildlife that surround it.
Stalls and learning
Next, we took in the circle of stalls, all of which had pitched at their own cost, all willing to share their knowledge and experience driven by a collective vision of river custodianship. From them, we learnt many ways we can help protect the river’s health, by switching to plastic-free period products (Green and Healthy Frome: Plastic Free.Period), decreasing single-use plastic by refilling (Denude), what not to put down the loo and sink (Frome Families for the Future), and how to dispose of unused medications properly (Frome Medical Practice). We learnt about what people really want from the river following the results of FFFF’s River Vision Survey, with easy inclusive access to the river being high on the agenda, and people wanting to be closer to nature and enjoy the healing benefits that these natural beauty spots provide.
Children’s Activities
The kids revelled in the fun arts and crafts, games and music. They loved looking at the treasures that Dean and Hecter from Magging Adventures bought, they danced to Martin Sheill’s superb nature-inspired rap, explored the river and spotted creatures with Bristol Avon River Trust, and listened with fascination to Terrestrial UK’s river storytelling. But crucially, witnessing the sheer joy that the children derived from the simple pleasure of basking in their riverside playground validated the purpose of the project. The aim of this festival was, yes, to raise awareness of how the river affects our health as well as the ecosystems around it and to learn more about how to keep the river healthy, but also, to bring people together, for all and everyone to connect with nature and to revel in all that being riverside gives us; this was achieved in spades. Bucket and spades full… and maybe the odd wader!
Feeling of Optimism
In a world that is often dominated by stories of doom around climate health, I left the River Festival with a feeling of unity and optimism, it was not just the sense of community that filled me with joy, but knowing that all these brilliant, hardworking organisations have a shared vision of making the river a thriving, healthy place for this welcoming community and the surrounding nature to cherish. The sheer number of happy, laughing faces, people connecting, eager learning, dogs darting and children playing is a testament to the natural magic that being riverside creates.
Quotes
- “This is the best event that I have been to in Frome”, Frome Resident
- “The chorus of the song, ‘I am the river, and the river is me’… it’s totally true. We don’t really think about rivers enough… it can make you ask questions, (like) what is the river, where does it come from, where does the river end? All of us, when we turn on a tap and take a drink of water, that is the river, that (water) comes ultimately from the river, (it makes us think about) the importance of water.” described Jeremy Wade
Stalls
- Frome Families for the Future
- Friends of River Frome
- Nurdle Nerd – Claire
- Stop Frome BESS
- Anglers Association
- Frome Town Council – Wild Bunch
- Somerset Wildlife Trust
- Everyday Eco Parenting
- Luna Plant-Based Kitchen
- Weaving with Clio
- Denude
- Sustainable Frome
- From Seed Library
- Plastic Free. Period – Green and Healthy Frome
- Dean and Hectors Magging Adventures
- Bristol Avon Rivers Trust
Join Frome Families for the Future, or one of the amazing community-led groups that support the health of River Frome. Become a custodian of the River Frome, donate, volunteer, take action or learn how to make small changes at home to improve river health. And, most importantly, enjoy the River Frome, it is for everyone.